In Spelling Tuesday, Owl is introduced as a Confucianist scholar whereas Pooh represents a Taoist. The author quotes Lao-tse’s saying, ” The wise are not learned; the learned are not wise” which explains the attitude towards the Confucianists by Taoist. The Owl learns indirectly from books rather than through direct experience and is described ‘lifeless’ and ‘humorless’ because the spirit of Taoism is not present in him. Also, Owl is accused of using pompous and intimidating words to keep others from understanding. Hoff also says that one reason that the knowledge of the scholar is hard to understand is because it might not match up with our experience of things and emphasizes the value of knowledge that comes from experience, or as Pooh puts it, “Lots of people talk to animals. Not very many listen, though. That’s the problem.” (Hoff 29) Lastly, the story ends with the idea that the Confucianist scholars blames problems of the world on the mind of the Uncarved Block or in other words, Ignorance
Discussion Questions
1.Many Taoists believe that certain deep, broad materials are beyond the intellect of a scholar. Do you agree with it? Why or why not?
2.If knowledge comes from experience, which is more important? Knowledge or experience?
3.What is the uncarved block?
4. What kind of scholar can you classify rabbit as? How about Eeyore??
5. What significance does the name "Spelling Tuesday" have in the story?
Thematic Analysis
Are the educated always right and truly full of knowledge? Benjamin Hoff argues against this idea of an educated man. The idea given by Lao-tze, that “the wise are not learned, the learned are not wise” (24), explains the main theme in this chapter.
KNOWLEDGE VS EXPERIENCE Hoff says that Taoists view Confucius scholars as “busy ants spoiling the picnic of life, rushing back and forth to pick up the bits and pieces dropped from above" (24). These scholars, from the Taoists’ view, are full of knowledge, but do not to go into the deeper matters that are applied in everyday life.
Hoff also compares Owl to the Confucianist, Dessicated Scholar, a scholar who writes “pompous and pretentious papers that no one else can understand” (26) so that he will appear superior. Hoff then relates to the time when Owl is confident that he can spell Tuesday, but turns out that he spells it incorrectly. This illustrates Owl’s incorrect use of knowledge that he has.
This leads to a question of the relationship between knowledge and experience. Hoff claims that the two parts do not speak the same language. Knowledge that comes from experience is more valuable than knowledge that doesn’t. As the poet Han-shan says, gaining knowledge without experience is like “the words of a blind man describing the sun” (29). You have to have experienced something to really understand it rather than learning it indirectly from sources such as books. This chapter also demonstrates that learning sometimes comes most from experiencing and going through one’s own mistakes.
THE UNCARVED BLOCK (IGNORANCE) Is ignorance really the best way to avoid your problems? Hoff also claims that knowledge often blames the mind of the Uncarved Block, or ignorance for problems it causes itself. They blame others for their limitations and nearsightedness. This idea of ignorance also continues today. All of us, at least some point in our lives, blame someone else for something that we have done wrong. Hoff indicates that we should sometimes accept our mistakes and learn to improve from them.
CONCLUSION This idea of a man with knowledge is a misconception; just because a man has gained knowledge does not necessarily mean that he is wise. Knowledge is not the most important factor in Taoism. Taoists value most highly the ability to gain knowledge from experiences and learn beyond what is taught indirectly. “It’s just that there is Something More, and that Something More is what life is really about” (31). We need to accept our nearsightedness and stop neglecting the problems we caused ourselves. This will help us to better gain that Something More.
Summary
In Spelling Tuesday, Owl is introduced as a Confucianist scholar whereas Pooh represents a Taoist. The author quotes Lao-tse’s saying, ” The wise are not learned; the learned are not wise” which explains the attitude towards the Confucianists by Taoist. The Owl learns indirectly from books rather than through direct experience and is described ‘lifeless’ and ‘humorless’ because the spirit of Taoism is not present in him. Also, Owl is accused of using pompous and intimidating words to keep others from understanding. Hoff also says that one reason that the knowledge of the scholar is hard to understand is because it might not match up with our experience of things and emphasizes the value of knowledge that comes from experience, or as Pooh puts it, “Lots of people talk to animals. Not very many listen, though. That’s the problem.” (Hoff 29) Lastly, the story ends with the idea that the Confucianist scholars blames problems of the world on the mind of the Uncarved Block or in other words, IgnoranceDiscussion Questions
1.Many Taoists believe that certain deep, broad materials are beyond the intellect of a scholar. Do you agree with it? Why or why not?2.If knowledge comes from experience, which is more important? Knowledge or experience?
3.What is the uncarved block?
4. What kind of scholar can you classify rabbit as? How about Eeyore??
5. What significance does the name "Spelling Tuesday" have in the story?
Thematic Analysis
Are the educated always right and truly full of knowledge? Benjamin Hoff argues against this idea of an educated man. The idea given by Lao-tze, that “the wise are not learned, the learned are not wise” (24), explains the main theme in this chapter.KNOWLEDGE VS EXPERIENCE
Hoff says that Taoists view Confucius scholars as “busy ants spoiling the picnic of life, rushing back and forth to pick up the bits and pieces dropped from above" (24). These scholars, from the Taoists’ view, are full of knowledge, but do not to go into the deeper matters that are applied in everyday life.
Hoff also compares Owl to the Confucianist, Dessicated Scholar, a scholar who writes “pompous and pretentious papers that no one else can understand” (26) so that he will appear superior. Hoff then relates to the time when Owl is confident that he can spell Tuesday, but turns out that he spells it incorrectly. This illustrates Owl’s incorrect use of knowledge that he has.
This leads to a question of the relationship between knowledge and experience. Hoff claims that the two parts do not speak the same language. Knowledge that comes from experience is more valuable than knowledge that doesn’t. As the poet Han-shan says, gaining knowledge without experience is like “the words of a blind man describing the sun” (29). You have to have experienced something to really understand it rather than learning it indirectly from sources such as books. This chapter also demonstrates that learning sometimes comes most from experiencing and going through one’s own mistakes.
THE UNCARVED BLOCK (IGNORANCE)
Is ignorance really the best way to avoid your problems? Hoff also claims that knowledge often blames the mind of the Uncarved Block, or ignorance for problems it causes itself. They blame others for their limitations and nearsightedness. This idea of ignorance also continues today. All of us, at least some point in our lives, blame someone else for something that we have done wrong. Hoff indicates that we should sometimes accept our mistakes and learn to improve from them.
CONCLUSION
This idea of a man with knowledge is a misconception; just because a man has gained knowledge does not necessarily mean that he is wise. Knowledge is not the most important factor in Taoism. Taoists value most highly the ability to gain knowledge from experiences and learn beyond what is taught indirectly. “It’s just that there is Something More, and that Something More is what life is really about” (31). We need to accept our nearsightedness and stop neglecting the problems we caused ourselves. This will help us to better gain that Something More.